A Proud Man
by CourtneyEllen
Summary: Lucius Malfoy was raised a proud man.


For QLFC, I was given the prompt: Choose a character and reverse their fate - Kill Lucius Malfoy

Word Count: 1,681

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Lucius Malfoy was raised a proud man, but in this moment he felt more like a coward than he ever had in his life. If he was being truthful, he had felt like a coward ever since his Lord had returned from the grave and had taken up residence in his home; his presence a continuous threat to his wife and son's lives.

In the years since the Dark Lord's supposed demise, Lucius had allowed himself to create the life he wanted for himself. Not the twisted, devotion-driven path his father had wanted for him. Abraxas Malfoy had been one of the Dark Lord's original followers and fully believed in his persuasive words of how Mudbloods and Half-bloods were the downfall of Wizarding Society. He had been dedicated to the Dark Lord as his right-hand man and had wanted to pass the mantle on to his only son.

Lucius was drawn to power and held the same prejudice as his parents, make no mistake, but he wanted a career in the Ministry. He wanted to be the next Minister for Magic. Instead, he had ruined the reputation of one and killed another. And he had ended up just like his father, ruining any future his son dreamed of by allowing him to get the Dark Mark. Lucius had not forced Draco to take the Mark, but his failure had solidified his son's fate. Draco was his only child, and while Lucius was cold towards him (to keep him safe, his conscience muttered every time his son flinched away from him), he had never wanted this life for him. Draco was supposed to become a Potion's Master like Severus and make the world a better place.

Now the two of them were standing on opposite sides of a battlefield, children Draco's age lying dead at their feet, some of which his sister-in-law had killed. Lucius was thankful to say that his wand had not been the cause of any dead teenagers. The only spells that he had casted had been stunners. There was no reason to kill the future of their world for Harry Potter. That was when Lucius started to lose faith in this whole cause. Killing innocents was not the way to keep the world alive. If only his father could see him now.

"Draco." Lucius beckoned. His fingers trembled as he reached for his son. He did not like seeing the Dark Lord standing against Draco. He knew that Draco was safe since he was a Pure-blood and a Death Eater, but with the number of dead children on the ground, Lucius did not want Draco to be among them.

"Draco, come." Narcissa, his beautiful wife, held her hand out for their son, and unsurprisingly Draco obeyed her commands. Neither of the Malfoy men could stand against Narcissa's orders. Lucius watched with bated breath as the Dark Lord gave Draco an awkward hug before his son was in his field of vision once more. His face was covered in soot and a steady trail of blood was dripping down from his temple. Narcissa shifted behind him when their son stumbled the last few steps, but Lucius was reluctant to let her step from behind him.

The Malfoy patriarch squeezed his heir's shoulder once he was close enough and subtly moved his body in front of his wife and son. They were his family, the only family he had left, and he would keep them safe. Harry Potter was dead, and the Dark Lord had no reason to stalk through the corridors of Malfoy Manor. The war was over, and they could go home. Draco could practice his potions with free reign and no judgement. Perhaps even Severus would take him on as an apprentice like he had promised the Malfoy heir before the Dark Lord's return.

Until Neville Longbottom stepped up for a speech, the almost Boy Who Lived had seemingly found his Gryffindor courage six years late. Lucius did respect the boy in that moment; he was standing against the most powerful wizard in the world, and his voice did not waver. It was sad that another Pure-blood boy would have to die for this war, for Harry Potter. So many had died already for the fallen savior.

Gasps and cheers filled the tense silence as Harry Potter lunged out of the giant's arms, stumbling from the impact. Lucius' breath caught in his throat and all plans for the future begun to crumble around him. Why could that boy not stay dead?

"Potter!" Draco shouted from behind him, pushing Lucius out of the way to throw his wand to the Boy Who Lived. Lucius was so stunned that he did not realize the implication of the action until the seething Dark Lord spun towards them, his attention take from Potter.

"You! I should have disposed of you the second you failed to kill Albus Dumbledore!" The Dark Lord was advancing quickly, and Lucius barely thought as he stepped in front of his wife and son. He had spent too long hiding from the Dark Lord. He was ready to be that proud man he had been raised to be once more. The Dark Lord blew Lucius aside with a flick of his wand, his head taking most of his impact and rocks cutting into his palms. But there was no time to worry about his own physical health as there was no one between his son and the Dark Lord. This thought caused panic to rise in the blond man. Narcissa would never let anyone touch a hair on her Dragon's head, not while she still lived. He could not lose them both.

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Draco shoved himself in front of his mother, refusing to let her shield him no matter how deafening her words were in his ears. She hissed for him to Disapparate, to run, but he would not allow his mother to bear his punishment.

"I love you," Draco whispered to her, not sure if she could hear it over the chaos, but at least he had said it. Draco closed his eyes, ready for his fate, but it never came.

The sound of Disapparating met his ears, and he peeked his eyes open to see that the Dark Lord had decided to chase after Potter. Draco was confused until he felt a tug on his pants. At his feet lay the proud Malfoy patriarch, steel-gray eyes staring up at his son in a way that Draco had only seen in his worst nightmares. Blood seeped through the white shirt Lucius wore.

"Lucius!" Narcissa cried. The ever-regal woman fell to her knees to cradle her husband's head in her lap. Many had opinions of Narcissa and Lucius Malfoy, but once upon a time they had been truly in love and had been each other's best friends. Their reputation and status had gotten in the way of those facts over the years, but their affection for each other had never faded. Draco joined his mother on the ground, attempting to put pressure on the cuts, recognizing this curse as being similar to the one Potter had used on him last year.

"I don't remember what Severus did," Draco's voice trembled, muttering half to himself and half to his parents. If only he knew that that same man had died a few hours ago, injured by the same curse that was now killing his father.

"Draco." Lucius attempted to get his son's attention, feeling weaker by the second. It was futile to fight the curse. "Draco," he called again, Bloody hands reached up to grab his son's face. Draco's muttering stopped, and his gray eyes widened, full of fear. A look that Lucius had seen on his son's face enough to worry any father.

"Father." Draco's voice cracked, placing his own hand over Lucius'. It was a rare moment of affection between father and son that had not occurred since Draco was old enough to ride a broom.

"I am proud of you," Lucius managed to get out. His vision began to blur and his breathing slowed down. Narcissa was already sobbing above him. "Take care of your mother," Lucius whispered, using the rest of his strength to grab Narcissa's hand to press a kiss to her knuckles. If the kiss left her fingers bloody, neither noticed nor cared. Lucius kept his eyes open long enough for Draco to promise to take care of his mother before succumbing to the darkness.

As Lucius Malfoy took his last breaths, Harry Potter dueled Lord Voldemort and gained the upper hand. The second Harry disarmed Lord Voldemort, Lucius Malfoy's heart stopped beating, slumping against his wife while his son cried silently into his chest. The small family, now reduced to only mother and son, were oblivious to the rest of the battle – the defeat of Voldemort and the escape of the remaining Death Eaters. Logically, both Malfoys knew they should run, but neither could move nor dared to leave their fallen Patriarch in the battlefield.

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"Malfoy." Draco looked up at the familiar voice, eyes meeting the Golden Trio when he pulled his head from his father's chest. Instead of the smug smiles he had assumed he would see, he saw only sorrow and pity on their ashen faces.

"Can we move him inside, Mrs. Malfoy?" Hermione's voice was soft, finding it easier to speak to the older woman than Draco. Narcissa, with tears streaming down her face - looking much younger than she was – found it in her to nod her head, carefully pulling her beloved Dragon from her husband.

Harry and Ron carefully levitated the blond man, ensuring that he did not bump into anything as they made their way into the castle. Hermione stepped up to Narcissa's free side, offering her support should the older woman need it.

In that moment, it did not matter who was on what side and what marks they bore. No, the war was over, many had lost loved ones, and now it was time to support those who mourned and to rebuild.

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I hope you guys enjoy this one!


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